@fabio Your point about the relative brutality of academia, especially for junior researchers, is very important.
I spent my early career (the most productive, high-energy years) at Bell Labs. The most important thing, aside from great colleagues and resources, that the Labs gave me was *freedom*. I spent my time actually doing research instead of writing grant proposals, teaching classes, serving on committees, and all the other distractions that eat the majority of a junior professor's time.
@fabio I think I was in the last generation where it was possible to have a career like this, and it gave me a huge advantage. There's no job I've held since then that has been as nurturing and protective of my time and energy.
